Non-fumigant Nematicides are Promising Alternatives to Fumigants for the Management of Meloidogyne enterolobii in Tobacco

Experiments were conducted to evaluate the efficacy of three currently available non-fumigant chemical nematicides (oxamyl, fluopyram, and fluensulfone) and a biological nematicide derived from Burkholderia against Meloidogyne enterolobii on tobacco in a growth room environment. The non-fumigant chemical nematicides greatly suppressed nematode egg production compared to the untreated control, the suppression being 99.9% for fluensulfone and oxamyl, and 93% for fluopyram. Similarly, oxamyl-, fluensulfone-, and fluopyram-treated pots, respectively, had 99%, 98%, and 94% less J2/100 cm³ of soil than those in the control. The biological nematicide did not have a significant effect on nematode egg production and the soil abundance of J2. The root biomass of tobacco was significantly reduced by the application of fluensulfone, while the effects of oxamyl, fluopyram, and Burkholderia metabolites were not significant compared to the untreated control. Results from this study suggest that non-fumigant nematicides have a potential to serve as an alternative to fumigant nematicides.